September 13, 2014
Worth-an-der- Donau - Winzer
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Another cloudy start as we struggled to find the right way out of town.
The day remained cloudy as far as Straubing, where we stopped to shop and where it started to rain. A dull almost featureless afternoon followed, with more rain near Deggendorf.
The ride along the river to Niederalteich was more varied scenically, Deggendorf port, some woodland, a lagoon. From Niederalteich we spurned the ferry and rode away from the river, inland so to speak. Outside of Winzer, we stocked up for Sunday at a supermarket, then rode into town and found the Gasthof zum Grünen Baum.
The bar was noisy, it was Saturday night after all and we were asked to order dinner straight away, before going up to our rooms. Barbara chose a meat-free pasta dish, without either of us really knowing what it was. I showered and went down to the bar to wait for her. Places were laid for us at one end, a little away from the happy regulars. Barbara took her time, meanwhile I was surprised to be joined by another guest, a cyclist at that, Hans from Nuremberg. He'd ridden all the way from that city, alongside the canal that connects the river Main with the Danube at Kelheim and on to Winzer, a total of 220km. At 50 years old, [he didn't look it] double respect. He was to meet his wife in Villach, Austria two days on. He said he just plugged away at 20km/hr, hardly stopping, eating bananas and power bars, “It's like being in bed,” he said. I wish. At Passau he would follow the Inn valley, after which his trance-like progress would be interrupted by the 2500m Grossglockner pass.
Barbara's pasta dish turned out to be sweet. Hans said that it was a normal [only in Bavaria, I'd guess] main course, which just happened to be sweet. “I like it,” he said. Barbara didn't. The landlady gave her chips [fries] and salad instead. Dinner over, we were joined by Heidi, who was curious to know how Barbara was coping with her long ride. She said she sometimes went out on short excursions with her grandson. All this to the accompaniment of beer, tuneless singing and some less than sure-footed dancing. A typical Saturday night, says Heidi.
Today's ride: 90 km (56 miles)
Total: 1,068 km (663 miles)
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